The Cockcroft-Walton Voltage Multiplying Circuit

Abstract

The conventional Cockcroft‐Walton voltage multiplying circuit is studied considering it as a transmission line. It is shown that, even when no direct current is drawn from the high voltageelectrode, there is an important loss in output voltage caused by circulating currents in the stray capacitances. This loss of voltage is independent of the supply frequency. Formulas are developed for the voltage efficiency resulting from a given choice of capacitor size and number of stages. Two modifications of the Cockcroft‐Walton circuit which improve the voltage efficiency are suggested and analyzed. The first of these involves a loading coil at the high voltage end of the line. The second involves the addition of inductors in series with each of the capacitors of the circuit.